There are fresh indications that Academic Staff Union of Universities,(ASUU) may soon call off its over Seven months Strike as its sister union, the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria,(SSANU) and Non-Academic Staff Union(NASU) will join ASUU strike beginning from Monday.
This was contained in a statement released by Joint Action Committee of Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities and the Non-Academic Staff Union to commence a 14-day warning strike from October 5 to October 19.
The National President, SSANU, Samson Ugwoke, and General Secretary, NASU, Peter Adeyemi, who signed the statement said the strike was premised on the inconsistencies of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System in the payment of salaries and the non-payment of Earned Allowances to members.
Other issues mentioned in the statement were, “non-payment of national minimum wage and retirement benefits to our members. The delay in the renegotiation of FGN/NASU and SSANU Agreements, as well as the non-payment of benefits to retired members, teaching staff usurping the headship of non-teaching units and neglect and poor funding of state universities.”
The Stated further added “Please note that this warning strike is a prelude to a full blown total and indefinite industrial action if the grievances highlighted above are not properly addressed”.
It would be recalled SSANU and NASU had earlier embraced IPPIS are now rejecting it on the ground that the government promised to take care of the peculiarities of the university system, but failed to do so.
Commenting on the various developments, the Nation President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi quoted to have said the Union ongoing strike would continue.
“We started our industrial action before the outbreak of Corona virus in the country. All the issues we raised are yet to be addressed. The government is free to re-open their schools, just like our members are also entitled to their dues”.
As SSANU and NASU joins ASUU on strike, there are high hopes of resumption as Government might have no choice than to meet the three Union and chart way forward to resumption.